Mining machine



June 1942- R. K. JEFFREY ETAL 2,285,862

MINING MACHINE Original Filed May 6; 1938 0 2 wm 5 ,T svwA r Ream A 1% TFL.W i 5 K w wr mmm /RMK 2 N w n E D E E R Patented June 9, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MINING MACHINE Original application May 6, 1938, Serial No.

206,448. Divided and this application Novemher 4, 1940, Serial No. 364,326

5 Claims.

This invention relates to a mining machine and particularly to the construction of a jack anchorage forming a part thereof.

An object of the invention is to provide a pivoted jack anchorage on a mining machine which will permit considerable longitudinal movement of the mining machine while th jack anchorage is operative to retain a bracing jack in operative position.

Other objects of the invention will appear hereinafter, the novel features and combinations being set forth in the appended claims.

This application is a division of our application Serial No. 206,4.48 filed May 6, 1938, for an improvement in Mining machines.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view showing a mining machine incorporating the structure of our invention; and

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the truck of said mining machine with parts shown in section and which shows the jack anchorage construction in detail.

In Fig. 1 of the drawing, there is illustrated diagrammatically a mining machine which incorporates the jack anchorage forming the subject matter of the invention herein claimed. The mining machine is disclosed in full detail in our parent application above identified, of which this application is a division, and so no attempt will be made to describe it in detail except as to those parts forming the subject matter herein claimed.

Said mining machine includes a truck 45 which supports a turntable II upon which is mounted for adjustment in a vertical plane a supplementary frame I which has a forwardly extending neck I09 carrying a turnover head mechanism I59 which provides for various adjustments of kerf cutting mechanism I60.

Extending rearwardly from and supportedby the truck 45 is a platform 545' which carries a considerable amount of mechanism which per se is not pertinent to the invention herein claimed.

The truck 45 comprises a main frame including spaced apart longitudinally extending frame members 45, 46. Said main frame is supported upon a forward axle and a rearward axle 52. The axles 5| and 52 are provided with appropriate driving and supporting track engaging flanged wheels 51, all of which are keyed to the respective axles 5| and 52. The axles 5!, 52 are connected to rotate in unison by chain and sprocket mechanism 59. It is thus evident that any driving force supplied to axle 52 will be transmitted to all four of the wheels 51 thereby insuring a maximum of traction for propelling the mining machine which is particularly desirable during sumping operations.

It is, of course, evident that the flanged wheels 51 are adapted to ride upon rails in a mine either for transporting the mining machine from one place to another or for supporting said mining machine while performing a mining operation. While we prefer this track mounted type of truck said truck may be mounted in any other desired manner as upon endless treads to operate in a trackless mine room.

Mounted upon the truck for swinging movement in a horizontal plane or about an upright axis is a turntable H. The turntable ll has at tached at its center a casting or pedestal l5.

To provide for the swinging movement of the turntable H about its upright axis with respect to the truck 45, the lower portion of the casting I5 is provided with a pair of spaced integral gears 19 with which cooperate a pair of racks to and 8| having spaced top and bottom teeth.

To apply turning movement to said turntable ll through the racks 89 and BI they are connected to hydraulic piston motors 82 and 83, respectively.

When a kerf cutting mining machine is employed to perform a sumping and swinging kerf cutting operation it is usual to support the mining machine against lateral movement by a plurality of elongated jacks one end of each of which bears against the mine roof and the other against a portion of the mining machine. Generally there is one jack on one side of the forward portion of the mining machine and another on the opposite rear side thereof, the jacks being inclined outwardly and laterally in opposite directions from opposite sides of the machine. These jacks are thus employed for the double purpose of preventing the mining machine from becoming derailed and for preventing lateral feed of the ker-f-cutter of the mining machine sliding the mine track laterally over the mine bottom or spreading the rails apart. It isevident that the turntable ll and the supplementary frame I00 must swing to cut an arcuate kerf and frequently may be adjusted while a sumping cut is being performed. It is therefore not expedient to rest a jack upon the supplementary frame Hit.

When a wheeled truck of a track-mounted mining machine remains stationary on a mine track during cutting operations, a roof jack may be anchored on the periphery of a selected wheel, but when sumping operations are to be performed by moving the whole machine along the mine track, the roof jack will be displaced and drop off after a relatively short distance of travel.

To provide for a greatly extended distance of travel during such sumping operations without throwing off the roof jack, we provide jack anchoring collars 123 at the ends of the front axle 5| of the truck 45, so as to be free to rotate relatively to the truck frame independently of the rotation of such front axle. Stub screws 125 are threaded into the outer ends of the axle and the circular caps 124 threaded onto such stub screws to provide the outer thrust bearings for the hub of the wheels 51. The outer c'entral portions of the caps 124 are provided with outwardly projecting bearings on which the jack anchoring collars 123 are journaled for free rotation of the axle 5| relatively thereto. Retaining rings 123' are welded to said outer central portions of the caps 124 to keep the collars 123 in close fitting contact with the caps 124. Set screws I24 lock the caps 124 against turning relative to the axle shaft 5|.

Upon placing roof jacks with their lower ends on the collars I23 and with their upper ends leaning forwardly, outwardly and laterally from the machine toward the working face, the jacks will remain effectively anchored at both their upper and lower ends during an appreciable distance of forward feeding travel of the machine along the mine track. This distance of travel may be as much as three or four feet. Such rotatable collars 123 serve as pivoted anchorages for the lower ends of the roof jacks which enables the use of simple and inexpensive roof jacks in that each may comprise a pipe or rod pointed at its upper end, with an arcuate shoe at its lower end to fit the contour of the collar 123. If desired the roof jacks may be adjusted in length so as to be extensible for the various positions of the mining machine during rectilinear sumping and withdrawal feeding movements parallel to the mine track.

Obviously those skilled in the art may make various changes in the details and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims hereto appended, and we therefore wish not to be restricted to the precise construction herein disclosed.

Having thus described and shown an embodiment of our invention, what we desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a mining machine, the combination with a wheeled truck adapted to travel on a mine track and be laterally braced thereby, said truck comprising an axle, of kerf-cutting mechanism mounted on said truck, means for operating said keft-cutting mechanism including lateral swinging feeding movement on an upright axis while braced by said track, anchorages journaled on and supported solely by the ends of said axle in position to receive the lower ends of roof jack anchorages upwardly and outwardly inclined transversely of the mine track to cooperate with the latter to prevent derailing of the truck during such swinging feeding movement of said kerf-cutting mechanism.

2. In a mining machine, the combination with a truck, traction mechanism for driving said truck, mining mechanism mounted on said truck including means for swinging said mining mechanism in a horizontal plane, and pivoted jack anchorage receiving means carried and supported entirely by an axle of said truck.

3. In a mining machine, the combination with a truck, traction mechanism for driving said truck, mining mechanism mounted on said truck,

and pivoted jack anchorage receiving means carried and supported solely by an axle of said truck.

4. In a mining machine, the combination with a truck having flanged wheels adapted to ride on mine tracks, front rotar axle means for said truck adapted to rotate as said machine is fed forwardly, and a jack anchorage pivoted to and supported solely by said front rotary axle.

5. A mining machine including a main frame, mining mechanism thereon adapted to perform a mining operation as said machine moves longitudinally, traction means for said main frame including a rotary axle, and jack anchorage means pivoted to said axle and supported solely thereby, whereby said axle may rotate while said jack anchorage does not rotate as said mining machine moves longitudinally,

Deceased. 

